Locking Mechanism of a Slide of a Weapon

ABSTRACT

A weapon includes a stationary barrel mounted fixedly in a frame, and a slide movably mounted to the frame for forward and backward displacement relative to the frame. A locking mechanism for the slide includes a retractable spring acting on the slide in a direction towards a forward-most position of the slide, and a pair of levers arranged under the barrel between the slide and the frame. The pair of have opposite end axes of rotation and are mutually rotatably connected by a common axis. The common axis lies under a line that extends between the end axes of rotation of the pair of levers.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The invention relates to a locking mechanism of a slide of a weapon,especially of a self-loading pistol, with a stationary barrel mountedfixedly in a frame, on which the slide is mounted displaceably forforward and backward movement.

BACKGROUND

GB 127642A discloses an automatic rifle, the automation of which isbased on the use of the energy of the powder gases discharged from thebarrel channel.

Under the barrel is arranged a piston which moves forward and actuates amechanism consisting of a complex lever system, telescopic connectingrods, a sliding element, and a row of springs. After a pressure drop inthe barrel, the springs stretched by the piston are activated by alocking mechanism to reload the rifle, whereby the locking mechanismfirst opens and then closes due to the force of the springs.

The locking mechanism consists of two parts: the body of the slide andthe screw of the slide. The barrel is locked with a screw that rotatesaround its axis during the firing, and its catches fit into theprotrusions of the barrel bushing in which the rifle barrel is mounted.

The device is too complicated and cannot be used for self-loadingpistols.

Known is the pistol CZ-83 produced by Česká zbrojovka, Uherský Brod,Czech Republic (www.czub.cz), as well as the pistol SIG-Sauer P232produced by J. P. Sauer & Sohn GmbH, Germany (www.sauer-waffen.de;www.sig-sauer.de).

These are self-loading-pistols, whose barrel is fixedly and non-movablymounted on a frame. During the firing process, the locking of a barrelchannel till the moment of the ejection of a cartridge out of thechannel and a pressure drop of powder gases, take place due to the forceof inertia of a massive slide and due to the force of a recoil spring,maintaining the slide during shooting in the frontmost position.

The important features of the above-mentioned pistols include a highdegree of accuracy of shooting, since the barrel is fixedly mounted inthe frame of the pistol, as well as the simplicity of the construction.

The drawback of pistols with this system of locking the slide is thefact that it is not possible to use high-performance cartridges, sinceto be able to use such cartridges it would be necessary to increaseconsiderably the weight of the slide, which would lead to an increase inthe weight of the whole pistol and would result in a great slide impactforce between the slide and the pistol frame on reaching its rearmostposition after the shot.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An aim of the invention is to provide a locking mechanism of a slideduring the shot of a self-loading pistol having a barrel that is fixedlyand non-movably mounted in a frame, which allows to use high-performancecartridges for shooting without increasing the weight of the slide.Additional objects and advantages of the invention will be set forth inpart in the following description, or may be obvious from thedescription, or may be learned through practice of the invention.

The above-mentioned objects are achieved by a locking mechanism of aslide of a weapon according to the present invention, whose principleconsists in that between the movable slide and the non-movable frame ofthe weapon under the barrel is arranged a pair of levers which arerotatably connected to each other by a common axis, whereby the commonaxis of the pair of levers is situated under a line interlaid by theouter axes of rotation of the pair of levers.

During the shot, the energy of the recoil movement strives to reduce theinternal angle between the front lever and the rear lever and move theircommon axis downwards, with the resistive force in the initial phase ofthe shot resisting inertia force of the slide, the elastic force of theretractable spring, the elastic force of the material of the levers andtheir connection, the frictional force in the connection, as well as themounting of the levers. It is only after overcoming these forces thatthe slide begins to move backwards. This ensures the possibility ofshooting with high-performance cartridges, while maintaining low weightof the slide and of the entire weapon.

The exact value of the internal angle is determined according to theperformance of the projectile and the construction of a specificembodiment of a pistol or another type of a weapon.

In a preferred embodiment, the pair of levers consists of a rear lever,which is rotatably mounted on the rear axis situated in the front partof the frame under the barrel, and a front lever, which is rotatablymounted on the front axis situated in the front part of the slide underthe barrel, whereby the rear lever and the front lever are rotatablyconnected by a common axis. The internal angle between the rear leverand the front lever may be less than 180°.

In order to facilitate the handling of the weapon before the first shot,on either side of the common axis of the rear lever and the front leverare provided grippers to be gripped by the shooter's fingers whenpulling the slide.

In a specific embodiment, the retractable spring is disposed between therear lever and the front lever and is formed by two arms, whereby therear arm leans against the top of the rear lever and the front arm leansagainst the top of the front lever.

Furthermore, it is advantageous if the retractable spring is arranged onthe common axis of the rear lever and the front lever.

In another alternative embodiment, the retractable spring is mountedbetween the rear lever and the front part of the frame of the weapon.

In another alternative embodiment, the retractable spring is mounted onthe barrel, which acts as a guide for the spring, and leans by one endagainst the frame and by the other end against the slide.

Also, the retractable spring may be mounted under the barrel on aseparate guide, which is parallel to the barrel, and leans by one endagainst the frame and by the other end against the front part of theslide.

DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

The principle of the invention is schematically represented in thedrawings of an exemplary embodiment of a self-loading pistol, wherein:

FIG. 1 shows an overall view of the pistol, wherein the position of thecomponents of the locking mechanism of the slide of the pistol are inthe starting state before the shot; and

FIG. 2 shows an overall view of the pistol, wherein with the position ofthe components of the locking mechanism of the slide of the pistol areshown after the shot and after moving the slide to the rearmostposition.

EXAMPLES OF EMBODIMENT

Reference will now be made to embodiments of the invention, one or moreexamples of which are shown in the drawings. Each embodiment is providedby way of explanation of the invention, and not as a limitation of theinvention. For example features illustrated or described as part of oneembodiment can be combined with another embodiment to yield stillanother embodiment. It is intended that the present invention includethese and other modifications and variations to the embodimentsdescribed herein.

The locking mechanism of a slide during shooting according to theinvention will be described based on an exemplary embodiment of apistol. The locking mechanism can be used on shotguns, such as automaticshotguns, automatic rifles, self-loading hunting guns, and machine guns.It is important to note that only the components which are directlyconnected with the invention and which are shown in the drawing will bedescribed here.

The pistol in the exemplary embodiment comprises a frame 1 provided witha grip 2 for holding the pistol with the shooter's hand. In the frame 1is fixedly mounted the barrel 3, in which a well-known unillustratedbarrel channel is formed. On the frame 1 is provided a well-knownunillustrated guide, on which is reversibly slidably mounted a slide 4,able to move between a front position and rear position.

In the front part of the frame 1 under the barrel 3 is arranged a rearaxis 6, on which a rear lever 5 is, by its rear end, mounteddisplaceably for rotatable movement with respect to the frame 1. Therotation of the rear lever 5 with respect to the frame 1 can be realizedeither by the rotatable mounting of the rear axis 6 on the frame 1 andby the fixed mounting of the rear lever 5 on the rear axis 6, by thefixed mounting of the rear axis 6 on the frame 1 and by the rotatablemounting of the rear lever 5 on the rear axis 6, or by the rotatablemounting of the rear axis 6 on the frame 1 by the rotatable mounting ofthe rear lever 5 on the rear axis 6. In an unillustrated embodiment therear axis 6 may be a part of the frame 1 or of the rear lever 5.

In the front part of the slide 4 under the barrel 3 is arranged a frontaxis 8, on which a front lever 7 is, by its front end, mounteddisplaceably for rotatable movement with respect to the slide 4. Therotation of the front lever 7 with respect to the slide 4 can berealized either by the rotatable mounting of the front axis 8 on theslide 4 and by the fixed mounting of the front lever 7 on the front axis8, or by the fixed mounting of the front axis 8 on the slide 4 and bythe rotatable mounting of the front lever 7 on the front axis 8, or bythe rotatable mounting of the front axis 8 on the slide 4 and by therotatable mounting of the front lever 7 on the front axis 8. In anunillustrated embodiment, the front axis 8 may be a part of the slide 4or the front lever 7.

The free end of the front lever 7 is rotatably connected to the free endof the rear lever 5 by a common axis 9, which is movable in the spaceunder the barrel 3 and the slide 4. On either side at the end of thecommon axis 9 are provided grippers 91 to be gripped by the shooter'sfingers when pulling the slide 4. On the common axis 9 is also mounted aretractable spring 10 with two arms, whereby the front arm leans againstthe top of the front lever 7 and the rear arm leans against the top ofthe rear lever 5. The common axis 9 is arranged with respect to thebarrel 3 under a conceived connecting line of the front axis 8 and therear axis 6. The angle directed to the barrel 3 between the rear lever 5and the front lever 7 will be hereinafter referred to as an internalangle between these two levers 5 and 7. The arms of the retractablespring 10 lean against the front lever 7 and the rear lever 5 in thedirection of the levers 7, 5 moving away from each other, that is in thedirection of the enlargement of the internal angle between the frontlever 7 and the rear lever 5, whereby this internal angle is always lessthan 180°. The strength of the retractable spring 10 maintains the slide4 in the front position, acting on the common axis 9 in the directiontowards the barrel 3. In an unillustrated embodiment, the common axis 9may be a part of the rear lever 5 or the front lever 7.

In an alternative unillustrated embodiment, the retractable spring 10may be mounted on the rear axis 6 and may lean by one end against theframe 1 and by the other end on the rear arm 5, its strength actingclockwise, that is in the direction towards the barrel 3.

In another alternative unillustrated embodiment, the retractable spring10 is arranged on the barrel 3, which acts as a guide for it, wherebythe retractable spring leans by one end against the frame 1 and by theother end against the front part of the slide 4.

In yet another alternative unillustrated embodiment, the retractablespring is disposed under the barrel 3 on a separate guide, which isparallel to the barrel 3 and leans by one end against the frame 1 and bythe other end against the front part of the slide 4.

Depending on the construction of the weapon, there are also othersuitable places of mounting the retractable spring 10, whose strengthalways acts on the slide 4 in the direction towards its frontmostposition.

To load a pistol, it is necessary to hold the pistol by the grip 2 withone hand, with two fingers grasping the grippers 91 arranged on thecommon axis 9, which are in the illustrated embodiment formed by knurledknobs, and pull them vigorously downwards and backwards towards the stopand then let go. Simultaneously, the rear lever 5 turns on the rear axis6 anticlockwise and by means of the common axis 9 pulls the front lever7 downwards and backwards, which, turning on the front axis 8 connectedto the front lower part of the slide 4, pulls the slide 4 backwards. Theslide 4 reaches its rearmost position. At the same time, the retractablespring 10, which leans against the two levers 5 and 7, is compressed.After releasing the grippers, the retractable spring 10 begins to movethe levers 5 and 7 vigorously away from each other. The rear lever 5rotates around the rear axis 6 mounted in the front part of thenon-movable frame 1, whereby the common axis 9 returns to its initialposition and moves towards the barrel 3. As a result, also the frontlever 7 returns to its initial position and pushes the slide 4 forwardsby the pressure through the front axis 8 to its front lower part. Duringthe movement forwards the slide 4, in a known manner, pulls the upperprojectile from the magazine and feeds it to a cartridge chamber of thebarrel 3 of the pistol to perform a shot. Once the slide 4 has reachedits frontmost position, it closes by the cartridge case of theprojectile the channel of the barrel 3. The system of levers 5 and 7expands from the rear axis 6 in the front part of the frame 1 forwardsto the front axis 8 in the front lower part of the slide 4, and forms byits shape a broken line having an internal angle less than 180°. Thus,the slide 4 is blocked before the shot. In this position the pistol isloaded and ready to shoot.

During the firing process, the bullet moves under the pressure of thepowder gases through the channel of the barrel 3. Simultaneously, thepowder gases, through the ends of the cartridge casing, push on theslide 4 and pass the energy of the recoil movement to the slide and tryto move the slide 4 backwards. The slide 4 by the front lower partpasses the pressure of the powder gases to the front lever 7, throughthe common axis 9 to the rear lever 5 and through the rear lever 5 andthe rear axis 6 to the front wall of the non-movable frame 1 of thepistol. The energy of the recoil movement being passed tries to reducethe internal angle between the front lever 7 and the rear lever 5, bringthe front axis 8 and the rear axis 6 to each other, move down the commonaxis 9, and compress the retractable spring 10. Several forces resistthe force of the recoil movement and do not allow the slide 4 to movebackwards in the initial phase of the shot: the inertia force of theslide 4 itself, the elastic force of the retractable spring 10 of theslide 4, the elastic force of the material of the levers 5 and 7 andtheir axes 6, 8 and 9, and the frictional force in the axes 6, 8 and 9.

During the movement of the bullet through the channel of the barrel 3,the slide 4 obtains enough energy of the powder gases to overcome theresistance of the above-mentioned forces that maintain the slide 4 inthe frontmost position. As a result, after the ejection of the bulletout of the channel of the barrel 3 the slide 4 pushes down the commonaxis 9 of the levers 5 and 7 and begins to move backwards, whereby itmakes the levers 5 and 7 move towards each other by reducing theinternal angle between them and compresses the retractable spring 10.During the movement backwards, the slide 4 pulls the used cartridge casein a known manner from the cartridge chamber of the barrel 3, the usedcartridge being subsequently propelled out by an unillustrated ejector.Once the slide 4 has reached its rear position and strikes the stops onthe non-movable frame 1, the slide 4 begins, due to the action of theretractable spring 10, to move forward and feeds the next projectilefrom the magazine to the cartridge chamber of the barrel 3 to performthe next shot. Once the slide 4 has reached its frontmost position, itcloses by means of a cartridge case the channel of the barrel 3. Thesystem of levers 5 and 7 expands from the rear axis 6 in the front partof the non-movable frame 1 forwards to the front axis 8 in the frontlower part of the slide 4 and forms by its shape a broken line having aninternal angle less than 180°, thereby the slide 4 is blocked before theshot. The pistol is now ready to fire again.

In this manner, the invention provides, as compared with the backgroundart, the possibility of shooting from a pistol with a stationary barrelfixedly mounted on the frame, using high-performance cartridges, whilemaintaining low weight of the slide and of the whole pistol.

The same locking mechanism of a slide 4 during the firing process can beused on automatic shotguns, automatic rifles, self-loading hunting gunsand machine guns. At the same time, the main principles of the lockingmechanism must be maintained:

-   -   the rear lever 5 and the front lever 7 must be rotatably        connected to each other;    -   the system of levers 5 and 7 must be located between the movable        slide 4 and the non-movable frame 1 of the weapon;    -   the common axis 9 of the rear lever 5 and the front lever 7 must        not be situated in the line interlaid with the rear axis 6 and        the front axis 8, and so the levers 5 and 7 must form a broken        line having an internal angle opposite the barrel 3 less than        180° and having a corresponding external angle greater than        180°;

Exact values of the angles are determined according to the performanceof the cartridge and the construction of a specific embodiment of theweapon.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

The invention is intended for weapons with a stationary barrel fixedlymounted in a frame for shooting with high-performance cartridges.

LIST OF REFERENCES

-   1 frame-   2 grip-   3 barrel-   4 slide-   5 rear lever-   6 rear axis-   7 front lever-   8 front axis-   9 common axis-   91 grippers-   10 retractable spring

1-8. (canceled)
 9. A weapon, comprising: a stationary barrel mountedfixedly in a frame; a slide movably mounted to the frame for forward andbackward displacement; a locking mechanism for the slide, the lockingmechanism further comprising: a retractable spring acting on the slidein a direction towards a forwardmost position of the slide; a pair oflevers arranged under the barrel between the slide and the frame; andthe pair of levers having opposite end axes of rotation and mutuallyrotatably connected by a common axis, the common axis lying under a linethat extends between the end axes of rotation of the pair of levers. 10.The weapon according to claim 9, wherein the pair of levers comprises arear lever having the end axis thereof rotatably mounted at a front partof the frame under the barrel, and a front lever having the end axisthereof rotatably mounted on a front part of the slide under the barrel,the rear lever and the front lever mutually rotatably connected by thecommon axis, and wherein an internal angle between the rear lever andthe front lever is less than 180°.
 11. The weapon according to claim 9,further comprising a gripper disposed at each side of the common axis,the grippers configured to be gripped by a shooter's fingers whenpulling the slide.
 12. The weapon according to claim 10, wherein theretractable spring is mounted between the rear lever and the frontlever, the retractable spring comprising a rear arm engaged against therear lever and a front arm engaged against the front lever.
 13. Theweapon according to claim 12, wherein the retractable spring is mountedon the common axis of the rear lever and the front lever.
 14. The weaponaccording to claim 10, wherein the retractable spring is mounted betweenthe rear lever and the front part of the frame.
 15. The weapon accordingto claim 10, wherein the retractable spring is arranged on the barreland engages against the frame at one end thereof and against the frontpart of the slide at an opposite end thereof.
 16. The weapon accordingto claim 10, wherein the retractable spring is mounted under the barrelon a separate guide that is parallel to the barrel and engages againstthe frame at one end thereof and against the front part of the slide atan opposite end thereof.